The Reuben brothers have secured the Department of Work and Pensions for a prelet of all 173,245 square feet of the Pilgrim Place 1 building over nine storeys in Newcastle city centre.
The Ryder Architecture designed building will be occupied by a DWP Service and Support Centre, which is expected to open in 2027.
The adjacent 90,000-square-foot Pilgrim Place 2 building is being developed and marketed as speculative Grade A office accommodation by the developer Reuben Brothers (Newcastle). The overall scheme will incorporate a plaza, public realm improvements and car parking. Bowmer and Kirkland are the main contractor.
Avison Young acted for Reuben Brothers (Newcastle) Ltd while BNP Paribas Real Estate acted for DWP.
Tony Wordsworth, director, Avison Young, said in a statement: “This major letting represents a tremendous vote of confidence in the strength of the Newcastle city centre office marketplace. The earlier speculative construction of Bank House brought forward high-quality Grade A office accommodation, which is now 75% let to a wide selection of professional and corporate occupiers.”
He added: “The developer, ourselves and joint agent, Knight Frank, are keen to secure occupiers for the Pilgrim Place 2 building, which will complete the Pilgrim Place element of the comprehensive regeneration scheme.”
Chris Turnbull, principal, Avison Young, who is project managing the development said: “There are already good signs of progress on site with the two tower cranes supplying the emerging cores of both buildings which, when complete in 2027, will procure the comprehensive development of Pilgrim Place, the southern block of the Pilgrim Street Regeneration Area.”
The Pilgrim Street regeneration began with the decision to proceed with the speculative development of the 14 storey, 120,000-square-foot Bank House office building on the site of the former Bank of England, which is now 75% let.
HMRC announced in November 2021 that Newcastle’s Pilgrim’s Quarter, part of the Pilgrim Street development, would become a Government Hub for HM Revenue and Customs in the North-East. The regional centre will provide office accommodation for approximately 9,000 HMRC staff and is scheduled to be handed over by the developer for tenant fit-out in October 2025.
Building works are in hand to convert the former fire station and adjoining police station into a niche hotel, Hotel Gotham, Newcastle, with works scheduled to complete in April 2025.
The Grade 2 Listed Worswick Chambers has also been refurbished for primarily leisure uses, and is currently being fit out by the operator, The Stack with a proposed opening date in spring of 2025.